I think Chex cereal may be one of my favorite gluten free items to keep on hand.

There are several varieties now that are gluten free and they make the perfect breakfast or snack. My kids will eat them plain for a snack, but they are even more fun and delicious when you play around with different flavors added to them.

Today I thought I would highlight a few of my favorite ways to use Chex.

Muddie Buddies might just be our favorite way to eat Chex. And I have tried these with SunButter and it works really well.

Lemon Buddies are also very good and are perfect for spring.

You can’t go wrong with Snow Buddies. Who wouldn’t like white chocolate and candy?!  (And for those with nut allergies you can just leave the candy out and it is still great!)

This Cinnamon and Sugar Chex Mix is very good. I made this during the holidays and we loved it.

And I can’t forget about Caramel Chex Mix. This one is really good too.

What is your favorite way to use Chex cereal? 

Note: This is not a sponsored post. I did not receive anything for mentioning Chex cereal. I just love their cereals and the fact that they are gluten free. 

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My family was recently sent a few bags of Enjoy Life’s Fruit and Seed Mix to try.

Now, I will admit that trail mix type food is not something I really miss. There are times like when traveling that it would be nice to have, but it was not really something that I craved.

However, when my daughter with the peanut, tree nut allergy opened the box from Enjoy Life and realized that there was a nut and peanut free type trail mix available that she could eat she was thrilled.

Really, she was more than thrilled. She was amazed that someone actually made a nut free type trail mix and she was so excited to find that it was available. So, because she was so excited about this trail mix, I was very excited.

Now, I don’t mean that it was not a good product, it was. We loved the taste and flavor of the trail mix, but there is something about the joy in a child that deals with food allergies, when they realize that there is a version of something they miss, that is safe to eat.

The fun of enjoying them eat that food again is something that is hard to describe.

And we enjoyed this so much, I recently ordered some through Vitacost to keep on hand. It makes for a quick and healthy snack to keep on hand that my whole family can enjoy  and for that fact we love it!

Disclaimer: I was sent some free product to try, but I was not compensated for my time in writing this post. And as always my thoughts and opinions are my own.

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My son recently had a birthday. He is my gluten eating and gluten loving son, who does not deal with any food allergies or issues.

He puts up with a lot, and sacrifices often, for those in the house that deal with food issues. And I have to say he is great about it. I am so proud of his attitude and willingness to put our food needs before his food wants.

So, for his birthday we gave him a special treat. My daughters and I decided that for one day, my son should be able to eat his favorite foods, pizza and chocolate cake. And we are not talking gluten free pizza and gluten free cake, we wanted him to have and enjoy the real thing.

We decided take out pizza at my in-laws would work perfectly and I bought a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting from Sam’s Club for him.

Yes, those are both gluten filled foods and foods that my girls and I cannot eat, but it was my son’s day, so we simply ate something else and let him enjoy his birthday meal. We felt it was the least we could do for all the sacrifices he makes for us.

For us this worked. I was able to give him his favorite gluten filled foods for his birthday and taking the “mess” elsewhere, made it much easier on those of us that deal with the food issues. I was able to take food the girls and I could have and we all ended up having a very nice day.

Birthdays and food allergies and issues can be very challenging and I would love to hear how you deal it. Do you have any tips to share? 

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If you read my main site than you know that I recently came out with a Cooking 101 For Kids ebook, but what you may not know is that this ebook is gluten, nut, and peanut free.

These are recipes that my kids cook. They are recipes that work with our food issues. They are all recipes that we love and can eat. And they are all gluten, nut, and peanut free as long as you read labels and use gluten free crackers, etc. 

Cooking with kids can be challenging, but cooking with kids when you deal with food issues is even more challenging. When you deal with food issues though,  it is even more important to learn your way around the kitchen and learn to cook recipes that are safe for you to eat.

Teaching your kids to cook will be a skill that lasts them a lifetime. It will save them so much money and they will eat healthier. And cooking at home is much safer for those with food issues. It is much easier to avoid the foods you cannot have, and the issues with cross contamination, if you make it at home.

Teaching your kids that deal with food issues to cook is so important and it will be a skill that they will always be grateful for. 

I will mention though that this ebook is not dairy free. I think many of the recipes could be adapted to be dairy free, but my family eats dairy, so the recipes in the ebook do contain, milk, cheese, etc. I just wanted to be sure that those with dairy issues were aware of that.

The regular price on my Cooking 101 For Kids ebook is $4.99, but for a limited time you can get $2 off by using the code “PROMO” at checkout. That makes it a great deal at only $2.99.

Are you teaching your kids to cook? I would love to hear what recipes and dishes you are making with your kids?

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Several years ago I discovered Stretch Island Fruit Leather and ever since then they have been a favorite snack for my family. They make a great on the go type snack or  a healthy addition to a lunch or breakfast.

Since they are quick and easy to grab and are healthy, I do not feel bad giving them to my family to eat.

And they are 100% fruit, so they are perfect for those that eat gluten, nut, and peanut free.

I know in some areas Stretch Island Fruit Leathers are easy to find, but in my area they are hard to find and are quite expensive when you do find them. So, my go to place to buy them now is Amazon.

And right now Amazon has several flavors of  Stretch Island Fruit Leather for only $11.99 a box and for only $10.19 if you choose subscribe and save. Right now I have several flavors on subscribe and save so that we always have some on hand.

The favorite flavors in my house are the strawberry, raspberry, and the apple, but we really enjoy them all.

How many of you have tried Stretch Island Fruit Leather

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If you deal with tree nut and/or peanut allergies in your house, or have issues with gluten, then you know how difficult holidays like Valentines Day that focus on candy, can be.

I love homemade versions of my favorite foods, including candy. And when you are dealing with food issues homemade is so much safer to eat, so today I thought I would highlight a few of my favorite homemade nut, peanut, and gluten free candies.

Homemade Peppermint Patties anyone?!

If you are not a fan of mint then maybe these homemade mounds bars are something that you would enjoy.

We love these homemade crunch bars. So easy and so good!

And I can not forget about these homemade heath bars. YUM!

What is your favorite homemade candy to make at home?

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Last week I shared that I have had difficulty adjusting to Sunbutter, but that I am really trying to embrace it.

Well, today’s recipe is my first attempt to really try to love it, and I have to admit it was a great place to start. I mean how can you not like something once it is covered in chocolate. I could get used to eating Sunbutter this way.

My daughter that has the peanut butter allergy really misses peanut butter cups and I can understand why. They really are so good. I used to make a homemade version of peanut butter cups that we loved. (And if you are gluten free, but can have peanuts, go make yourself some. They are a perfect gluten free treat.)

Because we loved the old recipe so much I decided to try replacing the peanut butter with SunButter. I figured it was an easy recipe to make and I would not be out much if we did not like it. Well, the did not liking it was not a problem. My family loved these.

My daughter with the peanut allergy was thrilled  that I made them and that they turned out so well. After she tried them I really realized how much she misses peanut butter and how my not liking things like SunButter has been so wrong.

My not embracing something has made her life a little tougher and I am going to change that. Even if I don’t like SunButter, I need to start doing more with it. And like I said the other day, it may not be the same, but it is still a very good product.

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Gluten free eating, and food allergies, bring about so many changes to your life and in many ways things will never be the same.

I have come to realize that some foods may never be the same, but that is okay.

I have realized that pizza will never taste quite the same. Yes, I can get make a really good gluten free pizza crust, but it is still not quite the same. It is good, but different than a gluten filled pizza crust and I have come to realize that.

A gluten free doughnut or bagel is probably not going to be as good as the real thing, but that is okay. Just because it is not the same, does not mean that it cannot be good. The alternative to our favorite foods may not be exactly like what we used to enjoy, but it can still be good. And over the last few years I have tried hard to remember this.

One thing I will admit to really struggling with though is SunButter. SunButter is a great product and I am so glad that there is a company like SunButter that makes life with nut and peanut allergies so much easier.

But here is where I have struggled, SunButter is not peanut butter. It does not taste like peanut butter and it has a different texture than peanut butter. There is a difference.

If you take a spoonful of each, you can tell the difference. And you can tell a difference in cooking. A SunButter cookie does not taste the same as a peanut butter cookie.

However, I have realized where I have gone wrong with SunButter. I need to stop looking at SunButter as a replacement for peanut butter. For the last two years I have wanted SunButter to be peanut butter and it is not. SunButter is its own product and a good one at that. I realized recently that I need to stop wanting Sunbutter to be peanut butter and to let it shine for what it is, which is SunButter.

It is made from sunflower seeds, so it is going to taste like sunflower seeds do, this is not a bad thing, it is a fact. I am realizing how good Sunbutter can be. I just need to remember it is SunButter, not peanut butter.

As I told my kids the other day I am learning to embrace SunButter. So, coming soon will be some very delicious recipes using SunButter.

Am I the only one that struggles with wanting some foods to be the same? What are your tips for overcoming that?

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I have a great Bob’s Red Mill breakfast giveaway going on over at my main site.

If you love Bob’s Red Mill, and can tolerate oats, you will want to be sure to enter, because if a gluten free reader wins, they are sending the gluten free versions of the products.

So be sure to enter if you haven’t yet. You have to click here and leave a comment to enter.

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Enjoy Life recently sent me a few of their new varieties of cookies to try and we really enjoyed them.

They sent me the Double chocolate Crunchy Cookie, the Chocolate Chip Crunchy Cookie, the Sugar Crunchy Cookie, and the Vanilla Honey Graham Crunchy Cookie and we loved them all.

But I will say that the Crunchy Double Chocolate Cookie was my favorite.

Now, these are a crispy crunchy cookie. There is nothing soft about them, but that is not a bad thing, we thought they were really good.

What I love about all the Enjoy Life products is that they are free of the top eight allergens, which means that everyone in my family can enjoy them.

I think these cookies would be great for traveling. Traveling with food allergies is always difficult and having products like this that are easy to take with you makes it so much easier. These would also work well for lunches or to keep on hand for kids to take somewhere when they need a treat or cookie to take along that they can have.

Disclaimer: I was sent sample product, but was not compensated for my time. And as always my thoughts and opinions are my own.

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